These Old Robes

Mark 12:35-44

Jesus said, Beware of the Scribes, who like to go around in long robes.

And in his teaching Jesus said. "Beware of the scribes, who like to go about in long robes and to have salutations in the market places and the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts, who devour widows' houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation." So who is he talking about? Who is walking around here in long robes?

Who is Jesus warning us about? Who is walking around here in long robes…? [Look at own minister’s robe] Well, there is me, [look at choir and notice their robes] and there is the choir. He is warning you to beware of us?

Who is Jesus talking about? In the Bible the word for robes appears about 29 times. It’s primarily in the Old Testament and the people who have robes are royalty. The King of Israel was sitting on his throne, arrayed in his robes. Queen Esther, as she makes ready for her appeal to the king for her people: ”Esther put on her royal robes, and stood in the inner court of the King's palace.” The New Testament talks about religious and ceremonial robes of the High Priests, and how they tore their robes in anger in reaction to the deeds of Jesus. The robes in the Bible end with Revelation as robes are the appropriate dress of the saints as they come into glory. “After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no man could number from even nations and kindred, and people and tongues stood before the throne, before the Iamb, clothed in white robes, and palms in their hands.”

And it is the same kind of people who wear long robes now. Jesus says beware of the scribes wearing long robes, those who love the place of honor. It sounds to me like Jesus is saying beware of those in long robes who love to sit in sky boxes. Beware of those in long robes who like to sit on Corinthian leather. Because it is still those who have power, those who have the ability to make or interpret the law, those who have luxury, wealth, leisure, and pleasure who wear the robes. We have men wearing long judicial robes. Judges wear robes. Religious leaders, popes, cardinals, bishops and other religious people wear robes. There are Wiccan robes for the ritual of witches. The robes for Zen Buddhists, The Dragon Robes of China, show rank, status, ambition, power, and wealth. Hugh Heffner wears robes. The man who walks about in long robes and promotes pleasure, comfort and feelings. We have graduation robes as scholars march around in academic celebrations. Buffalo Robes gave prestige and fame to the ones who wore them. Bath robes and spas and hospital robes.

Jesus is telling us to beware of those who wear long robes because it means that they must be close to power. They must have authority, reputation, wealth and power. They are people to fear. Those who break the laws and those who make the laws and interpret the laws. Those in robes are the ones to watch because they make and interpret the law or they have influence with those who do. Those who wear the long robes give evidence that they important people and they trust in their importance. Those who have power and know how to use it. They know how to take care of themselves. Those who make me rules can change the roles.

Jesus says beware of those in long robes because those who make and interpret the rules will always be tempted to make and use the rules for their own benefit. They plead on television for widows to give a gift to their ministry and widows have given up their homes. The scribes interpret the laws and widows lose their homes. Beware of the scribes in long robes who want to be seen with the beautiful people, travel as chaplains to the Olympics with bank presidents, who enjoy being invited as counselor to the high political figures. Beware of the executive directors of national charitable concerns who enjoy living the good life for they take swimming pools and scholarship away from the needy. Beware of the scribe in the academic robe who is on the Board of Directors of the University and whose wife is the travel agent for all the athletic teams. Beware of the ceremonial robes on those who decide where highways go for so often they go right by the director’s property.

Beware of scribes and religious teachers who own rental property and suck the life right out of a working woman. She came to my office for help with her heating bill last February. She had a one month bill for $600.00. How many of you have ever had a $600.00 a month gas bill? I told her that I had never seen that kind of bill. She said she had called PSNC. They agreed that it sounded pretty high, but they wanted to be paid. They sent her a pamphlet on how to reduce the cost of heating your home. But this is not her home. She rents. The landlord laughed and did not care that she had that kind of bill. He did not have to pay it. He wanted his rent.

Beware of the robes of luxury worn by those who run the companies that simply fire a good worker if his transportation suddenly fails. He is about to lose his house because he did not a car and the ride he had left, and so he missed work a couple of times and got fired. When the company has a work force large enough to support a vanpool for workers in the area! But it is not their problem.

Jesus says, Beware of the scribes in long robes who seem to enjoy being pampered, honored and praised. Because they seem to have a fairly high opinion of themselves and their ability to take care of themselves.

Jesus does not waste any time making the contrast obvious. The next story is about the widow and her gift of all that she bad. I don't think that Jesus is really concerned here about the money. The contrast that seems central to these two stories is that those in long robes seem to trust themselves and their power to take care of themselves and this widow knows that she has no one to take care of her but God. She even gives up the little bit of money she has.

She places herself entirely in the hands of God. We sing. "God will take care of us, through every day, all of the way,” but the Scribes says, “If you keep your eyes open for a good opportunity," God will take care of you, but we better take out a piece of the rock just to be sure. God will take care of you, as long as you know a good lawyer and keep our own man in office. The Widow simply sang God will take care of me, and she gave away all that she had by which she might have tried to take care of herself,

The Scribes in long robes believed that God would take care of them, but it was smarter to sell mobile homes to the widows at an APR of 25 %. The widow believed that if God was going to take care of her she did not even need a penny.

You and I have an awful lot of trouble with that, don't we? Doesn't God help those who help themselves? What kind of lazy, shiftless faith is that which just gives up and sits around and says God will rake care of everything? God has called us to be doers of the word, workers, to be good and faithful stewards. God has no hands but our hands. If God is going to take care of us in old age, he will do it by allowing me to accumulate enough wealth to last the rest of my life,

I don't know if Jesus would tell us all to do what the Widow did. I do know that the praised her faith and the risks she took and he warned us against the scribes in the long robes. I do know that when the rich young ruler came to him. Jesus did tell the rich young ruler to do exactly what this widow did. Give it all away.

And I do know that from the national statistics that that isn’t really your question or mine. National averages say the issues is whether or not you and I will give away two or three percent of what we have or keep it all. That is what the step-up program we have this year is all about, asking us just to take one little step closer to giving away enough of what we have to witness that we really do believe that God will take care of us. The tithe in the Bible is just a big enough bite out of our resources for us to be reminded that we do believe God will take care of us and just big enough to be a real sacrifice.

Jesus contrasts the scribes in long robes, who are wheeling and dealing and stocking it away by legal but harsh contracts, with the faith of this widow who just cleans out her purse and gives it all, turns to God and says, "It is up to you now.” And there are not many of us here worrying about whether we will give 90% of what we have or 75% of what we have. I don’t know about you, but I have a Iong way to go before I am in the widow's group. But I do have a chance this morning to move just a little bit closer by stepping up one step on charter. To say to Jesus, I will trust you just a little bit more by give up just a little bit more. I will wade out into the water just another step deeper because I do believe that you are there to hold me if I stumble. Who do you really want to be like—the scribes or the widow?

 Rick Brand

First Presbyterian Church of Henderson

Henderson, NC